Candidate: Take down Americus towers

An Allentown City Council candidate called on communications companies to demonstrate corporate responsibility by removing towers from the roof of the closed Americus Center hotel if the owner does not make safety repairs or sell to someone who would.

Removing the equipment would pressure the owner because it would lose significant revenue from the tower leases, candidate William Michael Donovan said Wednesday at a news conference near the building at Hamilton and N. Sixth streets.

The 13-story hotel, which has been cited for numerous code violations, is considered a key to the downtown's revitalization.

Donovan said that makes it a communitywide issue.

He said all stakeholders must discuss a resolution, including owner Americus Center Inc., whose majority shareholder is Mark Mendelson; city officials; the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp.; and corporate neighbors such as Symphony Hall.

"As a City Council member, I would work with all of these stakeholders to encourage the mitigation of these safety violations and the restoration of what was once and can again be a shining beacon of downtown Allentown," he said.

"We really wouldn't want to get involved in any political situation in Allentown," he said.

He was unsure of the value of the tower leases. Donovan said monthly leases can range from $1,000 to $1,800.

Americus Center Inc. and the city have battled for years over the hotel's condition. City officials contend it is a fire hazard because of electrical problems.

The city shut down the upper floors in 2002, saying they were unsafe. In March, it forced four ground-floor businesses to leave. The city erected scaffolding over the sidewalks to protect pedestrians in case pieces of the facade fall.

City officials do not have a complete list of who owns the communications equipment on the roof. They know two are Cingular Wireless and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. They are working to identify the others, including any that may have been installed without obtaining city permits.

A Cingular spokeswoman said the company would not comment because the issue is between the city and building owner. Sirius could not be reached for comment.

Donovan, 53, an associate business professor at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, said the companies should "consider the harm they are doing to the city" by continuing their business relationship with Americus Center Inc.

He wants the city to get tougher on absentee landlords like Americus Center Inc., based in Whitemarsh, Montgomery County.

Donovan is one of five candidates running for three council seats in Tuesday's Democratic primary. The others are Jeanette Eichenwald, 63, an administrator at Muhlenberg College in Allentown; David Jones, 42, a pastor at Lifechurch in Allentown; Eric Ramirez, 32, a health promoter and recruiter for the Institute for Leadership Education, Advancement, and Development Inc.; and Peter Schweyer, 28, chief of staff for state Rep. Jennifer Mann, D-Lehigh.